You need to start somewhere
by starkiller2886
Summary: A back story on Ralph's last moments in London


"Son, I want you to promise me something." Dad told me as I had tears running down my cheeks, the salty water stinging my eyes and staining my cheeks.

"Anything dad, just don't leave me." I cried. He looked down to me, guilt but also pride in his eyes.

"I'll be back before you know it. The Queen has called for all troops to take up arms against the enemy." Dad tried to explain, hoping to make me feel better, it didn't.

"What did you need to make me promise?" I asked hoping that it would buy me some more time.

"Be good for your mum. In case something happens, you're the man of the house." Dad told me as I nodded; he leaned down and kissed the top of my head. "Be good, I love you." Then he left. That was six months ago.

**Present day- England 1948 three years after World War Two-Beginnings of World War Three. Saint Johns Catholic School London, England.**

"If the quantity of 'x' continues on we will eventually get blah, blah, blah." That is pretty much what I understood of Mr. Nobles Math II class. We should be learning important stuff like money and ways to get a job. Who needs to learn how to find the area of a quilt or useless things on the lines of that?

"Mr. Riley, are you day dreaming in my class again?" Mr. Noble yelled at me.

"No sir, never," I answered rather quickly. He seemed to believe it or didn't really care because he went on yelling at Trenten, your average class bully.

Right as Mr. Noble was about to bore me even further the bell rang. What was that saying, saved by the bell?

"So Ralph, were you day dreaming about your daddy again?" Trenten yelled down the semi-filled hall with all the math department kids slowly stopping to see what was going on.

"At least my daddy isn't a drug junkie." I mumbled, which brought rage from the heavy weighted kid.

"What did you say daddy's boy?" He asked, face turning red.

"At least my dad isn't a drug junkie!" I yelled again. The halls filled with oohs after I decided to drop the heavy artillery on mister 'I'm not as perfect as I am made myself out to be'

"You know what you little bloody-"

"Mr. Riley, Mr. Johnson I recommend that you dismiss from each other before I have to drag you to the Deans' office… again." Mr. Noble 'kindly' suggested from his classroom door.

"Come on Ralph." Katie begged. Oh Katie my beautiful girlfriend. She's an exchange student from New York City but we started talking her first day in London. Since her host family lives just around the corner from my flat, I took it upon myself to walk her around and show her the sights in good old London. Most of which is still under reconstruction from the attacks back during the Blitz.

Then finally I gain the nerve to ask her and naturally she said yes.

"Yeah Ralph; let your girlfriend take you away." Trenten mocked which brought me out of my fantasy. I tried to yank out of Katie's arms in furry but somehow she managed to hold me still. In return she turned me around and we started to walk down the flight of stairs that would take us to our final period, study hall.

"When did a band geek get so strong?" I finally asked her when we didn't have a crowd of onlookers studying us. But she just turned and winked.

"Let's just get to study hall that way you can get some sleep." She whispered while we walked down the stairs to Mrs. James study hall.

Right as we walked into the room Katie and I headed towards the back of the classroom that way I could sleep in peace. Over the past few months I've been staying up late to take care of my mum. She's been very sick lately and she's also in and out of the hospital a lot. Dad has been trying to send extra money home, but I've been home most of the time, making sure that her condition doesn't get worse. The doctors said there isn't much that I could do but to take her home and let her live the remainder of her life in peace and around friends and family.

After my short but peaceful forty five minute nap Katie and I left for my flat down on the other side of London. Which with London being a square mile, it shouldn't take too long.

As we quickly walked to my flat I noticed how everyone was acting, some in a hurried panic other in quick cautious walks. Nerves still haven't set right since the second Great War.

"What's going on" I asked Katie as she shrugged like 'you expect me to know?' We continued on walking towards 69th street. That of course was the street in which my flat was located.

"Why did you have to live on the eleventh floor?" Katie asked with a frustrated look. I just shrugged in response while she fumed in frustration. We walked through the main entrench, I waved high to Fred, who was the building's Door man. He made sure no strangers came into the building but you could say that you were a cousin or other relative and he would let you stroll right through.

We walked up to the lift but for some strange reason it wasn't working. "Fred the lift isn't working!" I cried in frustration. He ran over quickly while muttering some unpleasant curses at the innominate object.

"Hmm… that's weird, it usually only goes out if there is a fire or another emergency. I'll go get maintenance. In the meantime I'll kindly direct you to the buildings main stair case." Fred sarcastically pointed to the narrow eleven stories (thirteen if you count the basement and roof.)

So we walked up the stairs, all eleven flights of them.

"You just had to live at the top!" Katie nearly yelled.

"You are from New York." I sassily smirked back while we kept treading up the stairs.

"Yeah but I live on the second floor on a three story building." She argued back while adding, "Plus, don't give me your sass." I only smirked at that.

"We finally managed to get to my floor, when I heard this strange buzzing sound overhead, then it quickly got louder, like a swarm of flies or bees, but it quickly turning into the sound of a wing of fighter planes. It's the blitz all over again.

"What's going on?" Katie asked opening the door and we hurried into my flat to see if mum knew what was going on. Then it sounded, the pain full screech of the loud air raid horn

\ "Oh my God, are we under attack?" Katie screamed as I quickly opened the door to see mum next to the radio listening intently.

"Ralph, is that you?" She asked in a frightened voice.

"What's going on?" I asked running up to her and hugging her not caring if Katie might make fun of me for hugging my mum. She looked really scared, and it didn't help that she was shacking and it looked worst in her unsteady wheel chair. "Come on mum, we should get you out of here." I heroically said while pushing her out towards the lift.

"Ralph, remember the elevator isn't working!" Katie yelled from behind me after she locked the flat's door.

"What's an elevator?" I asked curiously.

"The lift." She said after running over and pressing down the down arrow which didn't light like usual. Then that's when the lights went out and was replaced with the red glow of the emergency exit sign and some battery lights next to the lift and staircase.

"Let's go down the-"Katie started but was cut off when an earsplitting explosion demolished the buildings around us, at least it sounded like it. We raced mum to the narrow entrance of the staircase. We barely managed to fit the large chair through.

"This isn't going to be easy." I mumbled trying to figure out how we are going to lift a 180 pound woman down the stairs since her legs were basically paralyzed.

This is like being in one of those old war movies in the theatre, where you were trying to escape this isn't a movie. This wasn't a dream, this _is_ war.

"How are we going to get your mom down the stair?" Katie asked interrupting my thoughts.

"You're not." She suddenly said. That shocked the both of us.

"Not funny, that is no way at all funny mum."

The sounds of explosions were getting closer. You could hear the British returning fire. Sounds of fighter planes zoomed overhead. The air raid horn making its blistering sound, all around due to its echoing throughout the buildings I London.

"Go on without me, make sure you get underground!" Mum yelled over the sound of the explosions outside. She started to have tears run down her cheeks. I couldn't leave my mum out here, by herself to be killed by a bomb or some other sort of explosions.

"Ralph, she's right. There is no way that we can get her down eleven flights of stairs." Katie solemnly cried a little.

"Listen to her, I love you." She cried one last time before pushing me away and she quickly wheeled herself out of the top of the stairs.  
>"Come on, we don't have forever." Katie calmly said while grabbing my hand and we quickly ran down all eleven flights residents trying to go down as well.<p>

"You just had to live in an apartment with one freacking staircase!" Katie yelled, once again.

"Well sorry, it's not like I built the flat!" I yelled back as we finally ran down the last flight of stairs, huffing and breathing deeply. "I can't believe that we left her, we should have grabbed her, and we should have-"

"It doesn't matter, she gave us a chance to run and get to safety!" Katie yelled. Of course she's right, but it didn't make me feel any better. "We should head for the subway off of 5th street and we can hide down there." I strategized, Katie seemed to agree and we started to run down 69th street when suddenly a pitch whistle of a rocket flew overhead and suddenly 8 blocks worth of buildings were instantly demolished, including mine.

"Mum!" I screamed, knowing full well that even if she was alive she wouldn't be able to hear me, but it felt comforting to yell.

"Ralph, there is nothing we can do for her anymore. Let's just get underground." Katie reasoned which I agreed and we left hustling towards 5th street, only stopping when we would hear a plane zipping overhead but most were occupied by the British royal air force high in the air.

'Come on, only another block or so, please be only another mile or so.' I pleaded with myself.

"Ralph, look out!" Katie horrifically screamed then suddenly I was pushed to the ground and what looked to be an airplane wing came flying down and whacked Katie in the stomach and she flew backwards about ten feet into a brick wall.

"Katie!" I yelled sprinting up to her curding and trying to pray hopping that there was still hope.

When I finally managed to get up to the brick wall I saw blood, blood, and blood, it soaked her light brown hair to a nasty rustic red with her tanned skin turning blood red and dirt crusting around it.

"Katie, wake up, please wake up. I've already lost my mum; I'm not losing my closest friend!" I cried burrowing my head into her neck as I tried to lift her up, but I'm not really strong so I just sat there, with enemy and friendly planes zipping overhead. "It should have been me!" I cried into her shoulder.

What should I do? Should I just leave her here and make a run for it, everyman for himself? Or should I stay, have a higher chance of a crashed plane land on top of me or get blown up by a bomb.

'Think Ralph, what would dad do? Dad always knew what to do. I wasn't as strong as him. But I have played risk and chess enough to know that the longer you stay in one place during a battle, the greater the chance of getting killed.

'Run, hide, wait for it to be over. Katie and mum would want you to survive, to carry on the family's legacy in case something happened to dad. Little did I know at this time that this will be the first of many runs I will have from escaping ones that are my enemies.


End file.
